On August 3, 2001 three summer programs visited the RCN Corporation in Allentown, PA.
By: Robert Sgobbo
The RCN Corporation welcomed Packet Publications Journalism Camp, Princeton Summer Youth Program, and a middle school journalism group to their site on August 3rd at Allentown, PA. RCN provided the groups with tours of the facility’s television studio, and showed the types of equipment it uses to deliver news on its daily show, CNN Headline News and Local Report.
Among the tour of the RCN complex was the showing of two trucks, a Remote Production Vehicle and an Electronic News Gathering truck. Bill Evans, an employee at RCN whom acted as a tour guide to the group, described how Remote Production Vehicles are taken out to sporting events and school plays, which its broadcast is sent to the studio for editing. Several cameras are stationed along a playing field and its video is transferred to the truck. A Remote Production Vehicle has the features of instant replay, audio editing, and the ability to show digital graphics during RCN’s program.
The Electronic News Gathering truck, or ENG truck, connects to the studio for live broadcasts of strictly news events. The ENG truck can edit a video and transfer it as a live broadcast via the truck’s 42-foot mast. Evans told how RCN currently is using Analog Beta Cam, an older version of video recording. The new trend now he told is the use of digital editing because of its clearer picture and better audio.
"We’ll (RCN) probably be going digital in ten years," Evans said. RCN moved more towards converting to digital through its purchase of an all-digital Remote Production Vehicle it received in mid-August.
Inside the RCN complex, the group was shown RCN’s studio, the place where CNN Headline News and Report is taped. This broadcast runs for six minutes and is inserted every half hour from six p.m. to midnight. Rick Geho, Video Production Manager at RCN, gave a tour of the studio. Geho told how reporters write the stories, which are then taken to the show’s producers who write the scripts for the news anchors. Geho also showed several pieces of equipment that are used within the studio, such as four different pieces of lighting and several microphones. In addition to RCN’s news production, RCN broadcasts "The Polka Show", a show that strictly gives Polka music to its viewers.
"It’s our longest and most popular running program," said Geho. "There is a large Eastern European population who enjoy Polka in the Lehigh Valley where we distribute a lot of our services."
Both Evans and Geho told how RCN is the nation’s first provider of cable television, Internet, and telephone services all together. RCN has 95000 cable customers and 35000 telephone customers. Evans told how the consumers of Lehigh Valley, PA are given a choice of cable providers, while most of the country’s consumers are given none.
"The people here think this is the regular," said Evans. "The ability for the consumers to choose what cable provider they want makes a very competitive market." RCN currently is trying to extend its services to compete in New York City, Washington D.C., and Boston.
In addition to giving background to RCN, Evans told that cable television was created for reasons of accessibility in selling television sets in Pennsylvania’s mountainous areas during the 1940’s. During this time, those who lived at the highest elevations received the best television reception. Those people wired their television to other households with worse reception at a fee, thus starting cable television. The creation of cable boomed the selling of television sets in these areas because people in the most isolated places now can receive the luxury of television.
At the end of the tour, Geho told about the perks of his job to those future journalists in the tour group. "It is really interesting to see how television works behind the scenes," he said. "It’s a nice kick to see your own work or if a person whom sees your work tells you he/she liked what you did."